A significant number of Liverpool’s children’s centres are at risk and half of its libraries look set to close in the latest round of cutbacks.

City bosses are to announce later today how they plan to save up to £156m over the next three years.

While full details are yet to be revealed to staff and union leaders, the ECHO understands that there will be dramatic cuts to children’s and adult social services and leisure services.

Unless schools or community groups can intervene and balance the books, then a number of the 23 Sure Start centres face closure.

And, of the 19 libraries, at least 50% will have to close their doors.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said the latest cutbacks would be devastating but that there was no option left but to make severe cuts to all so-called “discretionary services” – those which the council is not by law required to provide.

The cuts will be up to 50% across those departments.

But even the statutory ones such as adult social services and environmental services will have to take a share of the pain, facing cuts of up to 25%.

Mayor Anderson said: “There will be a devastating impact on services within the city and what I’ve been trying to do over the last several months is trying to pull together the least worst options.

“I’ve said on many occasions that we are now having to prioritise the priorities.

“There is nothing in what we are going to announce that gives us any comfort at all.”

There are currently 13 Lifestyles leisure centres in the city, along with 23 Sure Start centres and 19 libraries. Factored into the cuts to the libraries will be the cost of honouring the repayments for the £50m Central Library refurbishment.

The Lifestyle centres which are running with significant levels of subsidy are facing possible closure, and Sure Start centres will have 12 months to try to find ways of staving off being shut.

Mayor Anderson added: “We will have to look at merging them, closing them or look to the voluntary sector.

“But (some) children’s centres will close.

“I don’t think there’s any way of dressing that up.

“The impact is likely to be felt on the biggest areas of spend, like adult social services, whether it’s residential or day care.

“Either we will have to commission (voluntary or private organisations) or close them.”

Several independent studies have found that Liverpool is the worst affected local authority in the country in terms of government funding cuts.

While its turnover is in the region of £1.2bn a year, most of that is teachers’ pay and benefits which it processes.

The “controllable spend” is expected to be cut by around £320m, which is equivalent to 56%.